What grit after scraping?

[Frithy]

G'day everyone,

My first post These forums are great!

I'm making a frame for a mirror out of old jarrah floorboards. I've planed back the old finish and have now finished hand scraping.

I'm wondering what grit should I start sanding with? I don't want to take a step backwards by going too low.

Thanks in advance

Dave

[watson]

G'day Dave,
I don't have any experience with scraping.......but.........I've been working with a few Jarrah projects lately.........ROS sanded from 60 grit up to 1200.......smooth as.
Anyway, the point is..I don't think there is a backwards step with Jarrah, it just seems to cope with whatever you choose.
I have the same question as to what grit do you start with after thicknessing (Particularily with Jarrah).
But I've never got around to asking.
So I'll be interested in what the "experienced ones" have to say.

Oh, and welcome aboard!!

[joe greiner]

G'day Dave and Noel.

I've gotten best results by sanding first, perhaps not as fine as 1200 though. Then scrape with the grain with a slight bias angle; smooth as glass. Even with pine, you can almost see your reflected image in the bare wood. [BTW, I use utility knife blades instead of traditional scrapers.]

Joe

[Frithy]

Scraping after sanding?

Hmm... will have to do some test pieces to see how they turn out.

Cheers
Dave

[gabacus]

ok... i have been trying to do some scrapping with limited success. i have been trying to put that burr on the edge but i am finding it a little hard...

from what i have been told, scrapping leaves a very smooth surface. actually, some people prefer the scrap instead of sand. basically, if you have scraped the surface there should be very little work left to do. if you insist on sanding i would go with 320 grit (at least thats what my hero david marks would do...)

[munruben]

G'day Dave and Noel.
[BTW, I use utility knife blades instead of traditional scrapers.]
Thats what I use too, does a great job and you don't have to worry about sharpening them.

Joe

[Studley 2436]

In my mind you plane then scrape. The Scraper is a great tool for getting rid of tear out that you can't get rid of with the plane. Then Sand

Get Ubeauts guide to finishing.

I used some Danish Oil recently on a frame. Sand back after it dries and it was a really nice base to wax on top of.

Having said that building up Shellac then waxing works well for me. I've lost my Triple E but that gives a great result over Shellac or Danish Oil.

Be wary of oversanding. 400 or 600 is heaps before you put the finish on. Then use the real fine grades on the finish before waxing and buffing off the wax with a rag or Swansdown Mop.

Studley

[rsser]

If you're happy with the scraped finish on the Jarrah why sand?

In any case, the timber is often coarse and is one lily it's hard to gild, unless you French polish or wet-sand with oil to fill the pores.

[Frithy]

Get Ubeauts guide to finishing.

Taking a trip to carbatec on saturday and I'm planning on picking it up then. Will read as much as I can in the shop so I can purchase some finishing products at the same time!

At the moment I'm thinking of doing a wet sand with some danish or organoil burnishing oil (which i already have) to help fill in the grain then finish off with wax. Hopefully this will give a nice smooth natural looking finish (not going for the varnish look for this one).

Thanks for the comments.
Dave